Cover System for Pontoon Boats

ABSTRACT

A cover system for pontoon boats is provided. The cover system facilitates the expeditious covering of a pontoon boat. The cover system includes a plurality of support bows that are laterally extendable across a pontoon boat deck and attachable to the railing of a superstructure thereof. A cover is affixed to a tubular roller that is configured to extend and retract the cover over the plurality of support bows. Support arms disposed at ends of the tubular roller include brackets for mounting the tubular roller onto the superstructure of a pontoon boat and supporting the cover on a side thereof. A handle is attached to the cover for enabling a user to manually extend the cover over the plurality of support bows. The tubular roller is operably coupled to an actuator that is configured to rotate the roller and retract the cover.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority from and is a continuation applicationof co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/299,744 filed on Oct.21, 2016, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.62/261,429 filed on Dec. 1, 2015. The above identified patentapplications are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety toprovide continuity of disclosure.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to pontoon boat covers. More specifically,the present invention relates to a cover system for pontoon boatsincluding a cover configured to extend and retract over a plurality ofsupport bows to efficiently cover a pontoon boat.

The majority of existing pontoon boat covers require laborious work toinstall and remove. For instance, conventional pontoon boat covers needto be pulled over the entirety of a pontoon boat as well as snappedaround the entire perimeter of the pontoon boat in order to be properlysecured. Moreover, the covers require that a user insert various supportpoles that vertically extend from the floor of the pontoon boat afterthe cover has been secured, which requires the user to crawl under thecover to insert them as needed. Furthermore, these covers are bulky,heavy, and take up a great deal of space, thus making them difficult tostore when not in use. As a result, conventional covers take away fromthe enjoyment of using pontoon boats, particularly because the workinvolved in installing them deters users from taking their pontoon boatsout when the chance of precipitation is even the slightest. Thus, thereis a need for a cover system for pontoon boats that provides a quick andconvenient way to cover and uncover a pontoon boat for immediate use orprotection from inclement weather.

The use of pontoon boat covers for efficiently covering a pontoon boatare known in the art. More specifically, pontoon boat covers includingcovers for covering a pontoon boat to shield the pontoon from theelements heretofore devised and utilized are known to consist basicallyof familiar, expected, and obvious structural configurations,notwithstanding the myriad of designs encompassed by the crowded priorart which have been developed for the fulfillment of countlessobjectives and requirements.

In these respects, the cover system for pontoon boats according to thepresent invention substantially departs from the conventional conceptsand designs of the prior art and in so doing provides a system primarilydeveloped for the purpose of providing a cover affixed to a pontoon boatthat is configured to expeditiously cover the pontoon boat without muchdifficulty.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types ofpontoon boat covers now present in the prior art, the present inventionprovides a cover system for pontoon boats wherein the same can beutilized for providing convenience for the user when uncovering andcovering his or her pontoon boat. The cover system includes: a pluralityof arcuate support bows including a distal member and a proximal memberconfigured to attach to a superstructure of a pontoon boat; a fastenerdisposed on an end of the distal member; a plurality of tubular members,each of the plurality of tubular members slidably housing one of theplurality of arcuate support bows, wherein each of the plurality ofarcuate support bows is configured to slidably extend and retract fromthe tubular member; a roller including a first end and a second end, thefirst end and the second end including a support arm having a bracketfor mounting the roller to the superstructure of a pontoon boat; atarpaulin cover including a first end and a free second end, the firstend being attached to the roller and the free second end including ahandle and a plurality of fasteners, wherein the roller is configured toextend and retract the cover; and an actuator operably coupled to theroller, the actuator configured to retract the cover via rotation of theroller.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Although the characteristic features of this invention will beparticularly pointed out in the claims, the invention itself and mannerin which it may be made and used may be better understood after a reviewof the following description, taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings wherein like numeral annotations are provided throughout.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of the cover system as attached to aconventional pontoon boat in a retracted position.

FIG. 2 shows a side view of the cover system as attached to aconventional pontoon boat in a retracted position.

FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of the cover system as attached to aconventional pontoon boat in a partially retracted position.

FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of the cover system as attached to aconventional pontoon boat in an extended position.

FIG. 5 shows a side view of the cover system as attached to aconventional pontoon boat in an extended position.

FIG. 6 shows a close-up view of a tubular member and a support bowtelescoping therefrom.

FIG. 7 shows an exploded view of a support bow of the cover system.

FIG. 8 shows a perspective phantom view of the spring-biased actuator ofthe cover system.

FIG. 9 shows a perspective view of the flaps of the cover system asattached to a conventional pontoon boat in an extended position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Reference is made herein to the attached drawings. Like referencenumerals are used throughout the drawings to depict like or similarelements of the cover system for pontoon boats. The figures are intendedfor representative purposes only and should not be considered to belimiting in any respect.

The present invention provides a cover system for a pontoon boat that isattachable to the superstructure of a pontoon boat. FIGS. 1-9 illustratethe cover system 10 as attached to a conventional pontoon boat 12. Thecover system 10 comprises a plurality of arcuate support bows 15, whichare laterally extendable across a pontoon boat deck 14 and attachable tothe superstructure 20 of the pontoon boat 12, and a cover 22 attached toa tubular roller 24 that is configured to extend and retract the cover22 over the plurality of support bows 15. A handle 26 may be attached tothe cover 22 for enabling a user to manually extend the cover 22 overthe plurality of support bows 15 in a first direction. Support arms 28disposed at ends of the elongated roller 24 are attachable to thesuperstructure 20 of the pontoon boat 12. The support arms 28 supportthe cover 22 on the side of the pontoon boat 12. The elongated roller 24is operably coupled to an actuator 30 that is configured to rotate theroller 24 in a second direction to retract the cover 22.

Each of the plurality of arcuate support bows 15 includes a plurality ofelongated members 17 that are slidably disposed within one another,forming a telescopic arrangement. The elongated members 17 areconstructed of a flexible material such as plastic. The cover system 10further includes tubular members 16 that are configured to house thearcuate support bows 15 and enable them to be retracted and extendedtherefrom, as shown by FIGS. 1 and 6. One of the elongated members 17 ofeach of the support bows 15 includes a distal elongated member 18including an end having a fastener 27 disposed thereon and a proximalelongated member 19 slidably disposed in the tubular member 16, as shownby FIG. 6. The fastener 27 of the distal member 18 is configured toattach to the gate side railing 21 of the pontoon boat superstructure20. In one embodiment, the fastener 27 includes a clamp configured toclasp the gate side railing 21. In another embodiment, the fastener 27includes a mounting bracket configured to receive the non-docking siderailing 23. The telescopic arrangement enables the elongated members 17to telescope from the tubular members 16 such that they can be extendedfor use, adjusted to accommodate differently sized pontoon boats, andretracted for storage. In this way, the tubular housing 16 also providesa storage structure for the support bows 15.

The tubular members 16 are configured to be mounted onto a side of thepontoon boat superstructure 20, such that the support bows 15 can extendlaterally across the pontoon boat deck 14 from the tubular members 16.In one embodiment, the tubular members 16 are fixedly mounted onto thenon-docking side (i.e., the side opposite the gate side) of the pontoonboat superstructure 20 inward from the front and rear of the boat 12 andevenly spaced apart, as shown in FIGS. 1-5. In another embodiment, thetubular members 16 include a mounting bracket for removably mounting thetubular members 16 onto the superstructure 20.

In the depicted embodiments, the pontoon boat 12 includes four supportbows 15 to provide adequate support for the cover 22 when extendedthereover. When extended from the tubular housing 16 and attached to thesuperstructure 20, the support bows 15 form an arch having a height thatextends above the highest portions of the pontoon boat 12. The length ofthe support bows 15 varies depending on the width of a pontoon boat 12.

In an alternative embodiment, each of the support bows 15 includes asecond fastener 29 disposed on the proximal member 19 that is configuredto attach to a non-docking side railing 23 of the superstructure 20 asshown in FIGS. 7 and 8. In one embodiment, the second fastener 29includes a clamp configured to clasp the non-docking side railing 23. Inanother embodiment, the fastener 29 includes a mounting bracketconfigured to receive the non-docking side railing 23.

The tubular roller 24 includes an elongated cylindrical structure, suchas a cylindrical tube, that is affixed to the side of the pontoon boat12 as shown in FIGS. 1-5. The tubular roller 24 extends along thelongitudinal length of the pontoon boat 12 from the front (bow) to theback (stern) of the pontoon boat 12. In one embodiment, the roller 24has a length that is approximately equal to or greater than the lengthof the pontoon boat deck 14.

The support arms 28 are attachable to the front railing 36 and the rearrailing 38 of the superstructure 20 of the pontoon boat 12. The supportarms 28 extend parallel to front and rear railing 36, 38 toward and pastthe opposing side railing 23 (or non-docking side railing) of thesuperstructure 20, such that the support arms 28 protrude therefrom. Inone embodiment, the support arms 28 are fixedly connected to the frontand rear railings 36, 38 of the superstructure 20 and angled downwardlyrelative to the pontoon boat 12 to maintain the roller 24 positionedbetween the pontoon boat deck 14 and a pontoon 40 of the pontoon boat12. In another embodiment, the support arms 28 are pivotally connectedto the front and rear railings 36, 38 of the superstructure 20, andmovable upwards and downwards relative to the pontoon boat 12, such thatthe elongated roller 24 can be positionable between a stowed position,wherein the roller 24 rests between the pontoon boat deck 14 and thepontoon 40, and a deployment position, wherein the roller 24 restsadjacent to the non-docking side railing 23. In this way, the elongatedroller 24 may be moved into a stowed position when not in use and adeployment position when extending the cover 22 over the support bows15. In one embodiment, the support arms 28 include brackets for mountingthe support arms 28 to the pontoon boat superstructure 20.

In one embodiment, the actuator 22 of the roller 24 includes aspring-biased actuator disposed in an interior volume thereof thatincludes a biased spring 60 and a ratchet 62 as shown in FIG. 8. Thespring 60 is biased towards the second direction and acquires moretension as the cover 22 is manually extended in the first direction overthe support bows 15. The ratchet 62 enables a user to lock the cover 22in an extended position and further release the tension of the spring60. Releasing the tension of the spring 60 initiates rotation of theroller 24 in the second direction, which retracts and winds the cover 22around the roller 24. In an alternative embodiment, the actuator 22includes an elongated hand crank having a length greater than the widthof the pontoon boat deck 12 and superstructure 20, as shown in FIG. 1,thereby enabling a user on a dock to actuate the hand crank when thepontoon boat is moored. Rotation of the hand crank in a clockwisedirection rotates the roller 24 in the second direction, therebyretracting the cover 22. In another embodiment, the actuator 30 includesan electric motor that rotates the roller 24 in the second directionupon actuation of an activation switch disposed on the pontoon boatsteering station, in one embodiment, or on a remote control, in analternative embodiment.

The cover 22 comprises an expansive structure configured to extend overthe support bows 15 and cover the entire pontoon boat deck 14 andsuperstructure 20 as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. In one embodiment, thecover 22 is constructed from a material including water impermeabletarpaulin. In other embodiments, the cover 22 may be constructed ofother water impermeable materials, such as nylon, polyester, canvas,urethane, or polyethylene. The cover 22 includes a first end that isattached to the elongated roller 24 and a free second end that can be,e.g., gripped by a user via the handle 26 to extend the cover 22 fromthe roller 24. The cover 22 is positionable between a retracted positionas shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in which it is wound around the elongatedroller 24, and an extended position as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, in whichis it extended over the support bows 15 and unwound from the elongatedroller 24.

The cover 22 includes a free second end having an elongated rod 42 thatextends along its peripheral edge as shown in FIGS. 3 and 8. In oneembodiment, the edge of the free second end is folded over the elongatedrod 42 and fastened or sewn to the cover 22 to secure the elongated rod42 therein. The cover 22 includes a plurality of fasteners 44 disposedalong the free second end for securing the cover 22 in its extendedposition. In one embodiment, the fasteners 44 comprise clamps configuredto clamp to the superstructure 20 of the pontoon boat 12. In anotherembodiment, the fasteners 44 comprise a plurality of hooks or tie downs.

The cover 22 further includes a first side 46 and a second side 48 thatare attachable to the bow and stern of the pontoon boat 12. The sides46, 48 each have a length configured to extend over the front and rearrailings 36, 38 of the superstructure 20 as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. Inthis way, the sides 46, 48 enable the cover 22 to fully enclose theinterior of the pontoon boat superstructure 20 when extended over thesupport bows 15. The sides 46, 48 include a plurality of fasteners 50that are securable to the front and rear end of the pontoon boat 12. Theplurality of fasteners 50 comprise grommets configured to receive ahook, male or female portions of a hook and loop fastener, such asVelcro, which are configured to receive the corresponding male or femaleportion, or the male or female portion of a button snap, which isconfigured to receive corresponding male or female portion.

In one embodiment, the first side 46 includes a transparent portion 58,as shown in FIG. 4, which serves as a window and enables a user to seeout of the front of the pontoon boat if and when a user must drive andnavigate the pontoon boat when the cover 22 is extended thereover. Inone embodiment, the transparent portion 58 is centrally disposed on thefirst side 46 and includes a rectangular shape; however, no restrictionon the location and shape of the transparent portion 58 is intended.

In an alternative embodiment, the cover 22 includes a first flap 52attached to an edge of the first side 46 of the cover 22 and a secondflap 54 attached to an edge of the second side 48 of the cover 22 asshown in FIG. 9. The flaps 52, 54 are foldable about the edges of thesides 46, 48 of the cover 22 so that they may be folded about the edgesof the sides 46, 48 of the cover 22 and wound around the elongatedroller 24 along with the cover 22 when retracted. The flaps 52, 54 aremade available during extension of the cover 22 over the pontoon boat 12and are configured to further enclose the superstructure 20 and pontoonboat deck 14 of the pontoon boat 12. When the cover 22 is extended, theflaps 52, 54 fold radially outwardly from the sides 46, 48 of the cover22. The flaps 52, 54 each have a length configured to extend over thefront and rear railings 36, 38 of the superstructure 20 of the pontoonboat 12 and reaching the front and the rear thereof. The flaps 52, 54each include one or more fasteners 56 at an end thereof for furthersecuring the cover 22 in its extended position over the pontoon boat 12.

In use, the flaps 52, 54 would be employed by first extending the cover22 over the support bows 15, attaching the cover 22 to the first railing21 of the superstructure 20, unfolding the flaps 52, 54 radiallyoutwardly relative to the cover 22, extending the flaps 52, 54 over thefront and rear railings 36, 38 and then attaching the flaps 52, 54 tothe front and rear of the pontoon boat 12 via the fasteners 56. Whenretracting the cover, the flaps 52, 54 would be stowed by firstunfastening the flaps 46, 48 from the pontoon boat 12, folding the flaps52, 54 radially inwardly onto the cover 22, detaching the cover 22 fromthe first railing 21, and retracting the cover 22 about the elongatedroller 24.

In one operation of the cover system 10, a user extends all of thesupport bows 15 from the tubular housings 16 and attaches them to thegate side railing 21 of the pontoon boat superstructure 20, such thateach forms an arch over the highest portions of the pontoon boat 12 asshown in FIG. 1. The user then positions the elongated roller 24adjacent to the non-docking side railing 23 in its deployment positionfrom its stowed position by pivoting the support arms 28 upwards asshown by FIG. 3. The user then extends the cover 22 from the elongatedroller 24 in a first direction over the support bows 15 by manuallyusing the handle 26 to pull the cover 22 over the support bows 15. Theuser then secures the free second end of the cover 22 to the gate siderailing 21 by securing the plurality of fasteners 44 thereto. A userthen extends the first and second sides 46, 48 of the cover 22 over thefront and rear railings 36, 38 of the superstructure 20 and attaches thesides 46, 48 to the front and rear, respectively, via the fasteners 50to fully enclose the pontoon boat superstructure 20 as shown in FIGS. 4and 5. The support bows 15 support the cover 22 above the pontoon boatsuperstructure 20 and deck 14. After the cover 22 is fully fastenedaround the pontoon boat superstructure 20, a user may then utilize theactuator 30 to retract the cover 22 in the second direction about theroller 24 until it is sufficiently taunt upon the support bows 15. Thecover 22 is tautly retained in its extended position via the fasteners44. When a user wishes to retract the cover system 10 to operate thepontoon boat 12, the user may then pull the cover 22 to release thetension from the spring-biased actuator 30, which then retracts andwinds the cover 22 about the roller 24.

It is therefore submitted that the instant invention has been shown anddescribed in various embodiments. It is recognized, however, thatdepartures may be made within the scope of the invention and thatobvious modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art. Withrespect to the above description then, it is to be realized that theoptimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention, toinclude variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and mannerof operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obviousto one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to thoseillustrated in the drawings and described in the specification areintended to be encompassed by the present invention.

Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of theprinciples of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications andchanges will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is notdesired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operationshown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications andequivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of theinvention.

I claim: 1) A cover system for a boat, comprising: a plurality ofsupport bows, each of the plurality of support bows including a distalend and a proximal end; a roller including a first end and a second end,the first end and the second end each including a support arm configuredto attach to a boat; wherein the roller is configured to rotate in afirst direction and a second direction; a cover including a first endand a free second end, the first end attached to the roller, the rollerconfigured to extend and retract the cover; and an actuator operablycoupled to the roller, the actuator configured to retract the cover viarotation of the roller. 2) The cover system of claim 1, furthercomprising a fastener disposed on the distal end of each of theplurality of support bows, the fastener configured to receive a railingof the boat. 3) The cover system of claim 1, further comprising aplurality of tubular members, wherein each of the plurality of supportbows is configured to slidably extend and retract from the tubularmember. 4) The cover system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of supportbows extend orthogonally relative to a longitudinal axis of the boat. 5)The cover system of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of supportbows comprises a plurality of elongated members slidably disposed withinone another in a telescopic arrangement. 6) The cover system of claim 1,wherein the roller extends at least a longitudinal length of the boatand parallel to the longitudinal axis of the boat. 7) The cover systemof claim 1, wherein the support arms are pivotally connected to the boatand movable upwardly and downwardly relative to the boat, wherein thesupport arms are positionable between a stowed position and a deploymentposition relative to the boat. 8) The cover system of claim 1, whereinthe cover comprises water impermeable tarpaulin. 9) The cover system ofclaim 1, wherein the free second end of the cover comprises: a fastenerdisposed along an edge thereof; a handle disposed on an edge thereof;and an elongated rod disposed along an edge thereof. 10) The coversystem of claim 1, wherein the cover further comprises a first side anda second side, each of the first side and the second side having alength configured to extend over a front and a rear of the boat. 11) Thecover system of claim 10, wherein the first side and second side of thecover each comprise a fastener disposed along an edge thereof. 12) Thecover system of claim 10, wherein the first side and the second side ofthe cover each include a flap pivotally attached to an edge thereof, theflaps being foldable relative to the cover and having a lengthconfigured to extend over the front and rear of a boat to fully enclosea superstructure thereof, wherein each flap includes a fastener. 13) Thecover system of claim 10, wherein the first side of the cover comprisesa transparent portion. 14) The cover system of claim 1, wherein theactuator comprises a spring-biased actuator disposed in an interiorvolume of the roller, the spring-biased actuator including aspring-biased towards the second direction and a ratchet operablycoupled to the spring, wherein extension of the cover in the firstdirection increases the tension in the spring and wherein the ratchetenables a user to lock the cover when extended and release the tensionin the spring. 15) The cover system of claim 1, wherein the actuatorcomprises a hand crank, wherein rotation of the hand crank rotates theroller in the second direction. 16) The cover system of claim 1, whereinthe actuator comprises an electric motor coupled to an activation switchon a boat steering station, wherein actuation of the activation switchrotates the roller in the second direction. 17) A cover system for aboat, comprising: a plurality of support bows including a distal end anda proximal end, the proximal end configured to attach to a boat; aplurality of tubular members, each of the plurality of tubular membersconfigured to slidably house one of the plurality of support bows; aroller including a first end and a second end, the first end and thesecond end each including a support arm for mounting the roller to theboat; a cover including a first end and a free second end; wherein theroller is configured to extend and retract the cover; and an actuatoroperably coupled to the roller, the actuator configured to retract thecover via rotation of the roller. 18) The cover system of claim 17,further comprising a fastener disposed on an end of the distal end ofthe plurality of support bows. 19) The cover system of claim 17, whereineach of the plurality of support bows is configured to slidably extendand retract from the tubular member. 20) The cover system of claim 17,wherein the first end of the cover is attached to the roller and thefree second end of the cover includes a handle and a fastener. 21) Thecover system of claim 17, wherein the free second end of the coverfurther comprises an elongated rod disposed along an edge thereof. 22)The cover system of claim 17, wherein the cover further comprises afirst side and a second side, each of the first side and the second sidehaving a length configured to extend over a front and a rear of theboat. 23) The cover system of claim 22, wherein the first side andsecond side of the cover each comprise a fastener disposed along an edgethereof. 24) The cover system of claim 22, wherein the first side andthe second side of the cover each include a flap pivotally attached toan edge thereof, the flaps being foldable relative to the cover andhaving a length configured to extend over the front and rear of a boatto fully enclose a superstructure thereof, wherein each flap includes afastener. 25) The cover system of claim 22, wherein the first side ofthe cover comprises a transparent portion. 26) The cover system of claim17, wherein the actuator comprises a spring-biased actuator disposed inan interior volume of the roller, the spring-biased actuator including aspring-biased towards the second direction and a ratchet operablycoupled to the spring. 27) The cover system of claim 17, wherein theactuator comprises a hand crank, wherein rotation of the hand crankrotates the roller.